1. Field of the Invention
This invention involves supporting base configurations in general and, more specifically, a multi-legged base configuration for support stands used in medical and other applications.
2. Description of the Related Art
The mobile support stand is well-known in the art and has been used for many years in the medical and hospital environment. The typical mobile support stand provides a long vertical support post mounted on a broad wheeled base. The support post is often equipped with a variety of mounting means for supporting medical apparatus and therapeutic products. The wheeled base is designed to permit efficient movement from room to room while also providing firm and stable support to the central support post during use. The urgent nature of some medical care introduces a risk of tipping or upsetting of the entire support stand that must be minimized through attention to the design of the supporting base.
A number of support stand designs are known in the art that satisfy the fundamental for strength and stability requirements. An acceptable base design must provide sufficient mass to reduce the center of gravity for the fully-laden support stand below the geometric center of the stand. The base must also be sufficiently broad to resist tipping moments imposed on the support post during normal use.
Alternatively, the support stand base must permit rapid and efficient setup and use by medical personnel, rapid movement from room to room and easy access to the support post. This alternate requirement leads to a preference for a multi-legged base design over the heavier solid, round base design known in the art. The present multi-legged support base designs known in the art generally meet the requirements discussed above, but such designs are expensive and labor-intensive to manufacture. This is because of the number of different component parts required and the complexity of fabrication of a typical multi-legged stand.
The present strongly felt need for improved efficiency and reduced cost in the medical business sector has created a demand for a support stand base design of efficient and inexpensive manufacture that meets all performance requirements. This problem is solved by the present invention in the manner described below.